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                            Assessment Pi
                            City  of Winchester,  VA
BACKGROUND

EPA has selected the City ofWinchester fora Brownfields
Assessment Pilot. The city also was selected to receive
additional funding for assessments atbrownfields properties
to be used for greenspace purposes. Winchester (population
23,5 85) is amedical, industrial, commercial, and agricultural
center located at the northern entrance of the Shenandoah
Valley in northern Virginia. As an old city (founded in
1744), there are few properties within the city limits
available for development, and many former industrial
sites sit idle due to  real or  perceived environmental
concerns. Some of these brownfields sites are barriers to
implementation of the  city's   Comprehensive
Redevelopment Master Plan, and negatively impact the
health and safety of the  community. Brownfields  also
impair implementation of the city's "Green Circle" Plan
for using a series of creek beds that encircle the city to
form a linear park and pathway that interconnect and tie
together the outlying city areas through its historic
downtown by bike and walking paths.

The city is currently considering five sites for the Pilot: a
formerpower substation, aformer agricultural station that
may be contaminated with herbicides and pesticides, and
a former lumberyard that was converted into a knitting mill
and may be contaminated with  residuals from wood
treatment and chemicals used in the yarn dying process.
Two other properties have been targeted for greenspace
development. These sites may change based on athorough
review of all sites in the city's database of properties and
community input. Roughly 18 percent of the city' s residents
are minorities, and 16 percent live below the poverty level.

OBJECTIVES

The city' s primary obj ective is to redevelop key brownfields
sites that are barriers to ongoing  redevelopment  and
quality of life initiatives. This redevelopment will be guided
by the city's Comprehensive Redevelopment Master Plan
and "Green Circle" Plan. To achieve this objective, the
Pilot will create an inventory of brownfields sites, select
   PILOT SNAPSHOT
    City of Winchester,
    Virginia
Date of Announcement:
May 2002

Amount: $200,000

Greenspace: $50,000

Profile: The Pilot targets five
former industrial sites that have
impaired the city's ability to
implement its Comprehensive
Redevelopment Master Plan
and "Green Circle" Plan.
   Contacts:
   CityofWinchester
   Economic Development
   Commission
   (540) 667-1815, ext. 478
Regional Brownfields Team
U.S. EPA Region 3
(215)814-3129
        Visit the EPA Region 3 Brownfields web site at:
        http://www.epa.gov/reg3hwmd/bfs/index.htm

      For furtherinformation, including specific Pilot contacts,
    additional Pilot information, brownfields news and events, and
    publications and links, visit the EPA Brownfields web site at:
              www.epa.gov/brownfields
and assess priority sites, identify and remove other barriers
to redevelopment of the priority  sites, and convene
community meetings and information exchange forums.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND ACTIVITIES

Activities planned as part of the Pilot include:
• Identifying and prioritizing brownfields sites;

• Developing  strategies for overcoming  barriers to
  redevelopment;

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• Assessing target sites;

• Preparing cleanup plans; and

• Creating forums for expanded and interactive community
  involvement.

The cooperative agreement forthis Pilot has not yet been negotiated; therefore,
activities described in this fact sheet are subject to change.
                                                                 Solid Waste            EPA 500-F-02-070
                                                                 and Emergency         May 2002
                                                                 Response (5105)       www.epa.gov/brownfields/

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